4 Best Sights in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Easily accessed via the abra station that delivers tourists from the textile souk across the river, the Spice Souk is one of the most popular destinations in Deira for visitors. It's only a small market, but the rear edges spill toward a more generic market area, which in turn meets the gold and perfume souks. Spices, dried herbs, and flowers and resinous globs of frankincense are displayed in large baskets in traditional alleyways and allow for some excellent photography opportunities. If you want to buy, look for saffron in particular, which comes in various qualities that will happily be displayed by the vendors. Feel free to ask them about everything—there are plenty of unrecognizable and surprising products available. It makes great fodder for the budding chef or simply the curious.

A series of stores runs from the Old Souk abra station, through to the Al Fahidi district. It's loosely termed the Textile Souk, though it's also full of tacky souvenirs, touts, and eateries. Meandering from the wooden arch at the old souk end will take you past pashminas, table linen, and cushion covers. Farther out, past the wooden roofing framework, the stores sprawl into neighboring lanes and are filled with the raw materials. Most of the fabric comes from India and China, and includes quality cottons for the Emirati dishdasha, exotic silks, and sheer bejeweled fabrics and saris. You can order a full skein of cloth to take home, or have one of the tailors in the area construct something from your chosen fabric within a couple of days. Even if you're not buying, it's a worthwhile place to wander, a thriving marketplace full of photogenic aging architecture and colorful characters.

In the historic Al Fahidi district, this alfresco only café is a perfect pit-stop while trawling the souks and Dubai Museum. Service is slow, but you might enjoy a bit of time-wasting while sitting in the traditional shaded courtyard on plump wicker chairs or browsing the local art and crafts they display for sale. Food is pan-Arabic, with the best dishes offered up until 12:30 for breakfast. Enjoy with a wide range of tea, juice, and smoothies. No alcohol served.

Scents play a significant role in Arab traditions. Burning herbs and incense fill a room or tent with fragrance, and natural essential oils are mixed to create perfumes for the body. Traditionally were a luxury for the affluent, perfume oils are still stored in ornate bottles with tops fashioned from cut glass and semiprecious stones. Even with today's international fragrance brands, you can still have your own scent mixed at the Perfume Souk, which is more a dispersion of similarly themed stores along a street rather than a formal market area. Avoid the commercial brands (they may not be genuine anyway), and instead allow the perfumers to advise you on which oils are most suitable for your skin and lifestyle. They'll pack it all up in a unique bottle that doubles as a souvenir of the experience.